


The Second Notebook

by Whisper132



Category: Tennis no Oujisama | Prince of Tennis
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2005-09-19
Updated: 2005-11-14
Packaged: 2017-10-23 20:55:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 11,218
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/254884
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Whisper132/pseuds/Whisper132
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>My first foray into PoT, in which Inui and Kaidoh finally get themselves together and magical shounen love happens.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Oishi looked around Inui’s room and sighed. He didn’t particularly want to be spending a lovely Sunday afternoon with the data collector, but his science grade required that he and Inui complete their report on the history of cyanide. Truth be told, Oishi would rather be with Kikumaru, playing video games or simply listening to music in the dark, but if Oishi wanted a bright future, he had to spend a less than fabulous day with Inui, who was currently making himself a snack. “At least we’re almost done,” the fukubuchou smiled, looking at a sketch Eiji had drawn in his notebook during lunch the previous Wednesday. It was supposed to be the molecular structure of love.

“That molecule cannot exist, Oishi. It is 98 percent unstable in the second carbon bond. It would fall apart in anything but a vacuum.”

“Oh, Inui, you’re back. I was just reviewing my notes.” Oishi quickly hid the doodle. He suspected Inui knew about his relationship with Kikumaru (the Golden Pair was a little too synchronized for the average doubles team), but Oishi wasn’t about to advertise it. It was in the process of stowing his notebook in his backpack that Oishi managed a glance at the stacks of notebooks under Inui’s desk. One stack was topped with a notebook reading “Seigaku, Volume 27” and the other, “KK, Volume 59.” Oishi wondered how anyone could take 59 books of notes on a single subject.

“We have compiled all of the data we need. Once we create an outline for the presentation, it would be more efficient to do our work separately and reconvene Tuesday after practice to consolidate our report.” Oishi caught Inui’s head moving to glance at the atomically timed, digital clock on the wall over the desk. “If you would like, I will draft up a proposal and email it to you this evening.” Again Inui looked toward the clock.

“I should be getting home soon so I’ll take you up on your offer.” Oishi smiled and rose from the floor, again catching sight of the notebooks. “I’ll see you at school tomorrow.”

“I’ll show you out.” Inui grabbed a duffle bag from under his bed and led Oishi to the front of the house.

“Do you have somewhere to be, Inui?” Oishi asked as he put his shoes on at the front entrance, noting that Inui was lacing up his cross-trainers.

“There is a 64 percent chance that Kaidoh will overwork himself during this evening’s training. I am going to intercept him before he hurts himself and lowers his chance of succeeding in the upcoming ranking match by 12 percent.”

“That’s good of you.” Oishi noticed that Inui had two notebooks set beside him, one that read “Seigaku, Volume 28” and the other, “KK, Volume 60.” He figured he might as well ask, “Is that Kaidoh’s personal folder?”

Inui’s cheeks colored and he paused a moment before a shaky “Aa” escaped his lips. “If you do not hurry, you will miss Kikumaru’s call. He should be calling your home in approximately 16 minutes to inform you of his neighbor’s new kittens. There is a 98 percent chance that he will be adopting 1 of them, a 71 percent chance that he will adopt 2. He will name the first one…”

“Nanaka,” Oishi finished, delighting a little in Inui’s flustered state.

“Aa.” Inui looked to his wrist watch and stood quickly. “My apologies, I must go.” Inui bowed and ran out the main door. Oishi hurried home to receive Kikumaru’s call.

-&-

“Ne Kaidoh, you should remove one weight from your left ankle or you’re going to sprain it.” Inui jotted down a note.

“Hai senpai.” Kaidoh removed a weight while he continued his seated stretches. Inui-senpai had made him do extra, claiming that his chances of pulling a hamstring were very high today due to the chill in the air. “Senpai, is your project with Oishi-senpai going well?”

Inui looked up from his notebook and smiled. “Aa. We have collected the needed data and will finish up tomorrow.” Inui jotted down a few more notes then switched notebooks. Kaidoh could never understand why Inui always had two notebooks on hand nowadays. He’d started recording in two different books at the beginning of the semester, right before they began playing doubles. Maybe it was for class notes and he studied while Kaidoh trained. While the mamushi was curious, he wasn’t rude enough to straight out ask about it. Instead, he craned his head a little to see if there were any markings on the notebooks. All he could make out was the number 60. “How are your studies coming, Kaidoh? Are you still struggling in English?”

“No senpai, the studying technique you suggested is working. I got an A on my last test.” Kaidoh stopped stretching long enough to offer Inui a small nod of thanks. Without Inui-senpai’s help, he would have continued to get C’s, and C’s were not an acceptable grade for Kaidoh Kaoru, no matter how difficult the subject.

“That is good. If anything else gives you trouble, I’ll see what I can do for you.” Inui jotted a few more notes then closed the notebook. “Now a warm up run, three laps around the park, then racquet forms. You’ll skip the longer run today. The wind brings an 83 percent chance that you’ll catch cold if you sweat too much.”

“You can’t catch a cold from sweating, senpai.” Kaidoh enjoyed his long runs. They gave him time to think about his game and his progress. Normally, Kaidoh would just ignore Inui’s advice and run home instead of taking the train, but Kaidoh had the notion that Inui-senpai probably knew that that was what he was going to do and would intervene somehow.

“You will catch cold because you didn’t bring a sweatshirt and it will take you 20 minutes to get home if you jog at normal pace. Within that time, it is likely that you will catch cold.” Inui’s lips stretched into a thin line and his arms folded over his chest. “No long runs today.”

“Hai, senpai.” Kaidoh sighed then set off on his warm-up laps. Every other step he reminded himself that Inui-senpai was only doing this to further Kaidoh’s game. If Kaidoh didn’t train, he wouldn’t improve and, if he didn’t improve, he would drag Inui-senpai down. With a final grunt, Kaidoh quickened his pace.

-&-

Damn but Fuji was talkative today. All afternoon he’d been recounting the tale of Kikumaru’s newest kittens, Nanaka and Pablo. Tezuka didn’t mind a story every now and then, but this one seemed to stretch on for hours. Every time they crossed paths at practice, Fuji would start in on the kittens. Finally, the buchou had had enough. “Fuji, twenty laps.”

“But Tezuka, I didn’t do anything.” Fuji’s smile was in place but his hands were clenching into fists at his side.

“It will help you focus on practice instead of trivial matters.” Tezuka believed he heard Kikumaru whining that his kittens were not trivial, but the acrobatic player could’ve been talking to anyone, really.

“Saa Tezuka, I will remember this when your birthday comes around.” The tensai took off running, his feet hitting the ground a little harder than usual.

“I do not believe it is wise to anger Fuji today.” Tezuka turned and raised an eyebrow at Inui, who continued on as if nothing were out of the ordinary. “According to my data, he had a dispute with Yuuta last night and is not in a good mood. He returned three love letters that were in his shoe box today.”

“Fuji’s personal life is not my concern. His performance at practice is.” Tezuka turned back to the courts, scrutinizing his players. “Kaidoh has improved. His Boomerang Snake has more range and accuracy.”

“Aa, he practices hard.” Inui wrote something down in his notebook then chuckled. Tezuka turned to him again, not speaking, but his glare demanding an answer. “I was simply remembering an occurance at this morning’s practice. Do not mind me.” Inui wrote another note then switched to another notebook. Tezuka watched then raised an eyebrow in inquiry. “I am collecting more specialized data on Kaidoh to further our doubles game.”

“Inui, twenty laps.” Tezuka didn’t laugh at Inui’s flabbergasted expression, though the temptation was high.

“I find your actions improbable and irrational, Tezuka. Please explain them.” Inui switched notebooks and readied his pencil.

“Twenty laps. If you have questions, ask Fuji.” Tezuka walked away to correct Arai’s backhand grip.

-&-

Inui sat at his desk, reviewing his notes for the day. The Golden Pair were in particularly high form at practice which meant that Oishi arrived home in time to receive Kikumaru’s call and, 76 percent chance, run over to see the new kittens. Fuji had thrown water on Tezuka after finishing the twenty laps the buchou ordered. It was doubtful that Tezuka’s week would be anything but fraught with disaster. If you angered Fuji, there was a 100 percent chance that his vengeance would be painful and long lasting. However, if Tezuka apologized, 43 percent chance, then Fuji would forgive him, 87 percent chance. But, there was only a 12 percent chance of Tezuka connecting Fuji’s continual chatter that day with the tensai’s need to find comfort in Tezuka during difficult times. If Inui were a nicer person, he would clue Tezuka in, but the twenty laps he’d been forced to run had reduced his altruism by 48 percent that day. If, next week, Tezuka had ceased to be cranky, 62 percent chance, Inui would help his long time friend and rival.

“Sadaharu, telephone!”

Inui picked up his cordless telephone and smiled. 86 percent chance it was Kaidoh. “Hello?” His mother hung up and Inui heard a hiss. “Ah, Kaidoh, what can I do for you?”

“Mom would like you to come over for dinner tomorrow to thank you for helping me with my English.” Another hiss. Kaidoh only hissed when he was upset.

“Kaidoh, is something bothering you?” Inui had to refrain from chuckling at his doubles partner’s quirks. They really were adorable.

“No. I’m just tired.”

Inui could nearly see the blush on Kaidoh’s cheeks, tinting them 44 percent darker than usual. “Well then, I shouldn’t keep you up. Tell your mother I would be delighted to come to dinner, but that I don’t require any thanks for assisting you. It is always my pleasure.” Inui had expected this offer to come two days earlier, but he didn’t have enough data on Kaidoh’s mother to be certain. Dinner tomorrow would provide an excellent opportunity to collect the final bits of data he needed before…

“Inui-senpai?”

“Yes Kaidoh?”

“I’m going to bed now, Inui-senpai. Good night.”

“Good night, Kaidoh. I’ll see you tomorrow morning.”

“Okay. Sleep better tonight, Inui-senpai” Kaidoh hung up but Inui left his phone on a moment while he wondered how Kaidoh knew he hadn’t slept well the night before. His glasses should’ve obscured the dark circles under his eyes. Finally, Inui turned off the phone and turned back to his data notebook, ready to calculate the final entry for the day. Yesterday’s figures had kept him up, planning and praying and recalculating because he’d obviously done something wrong.

“Kaidoh Kaoru’s acceptance probability,” Inui took a deep breathe, “97 percent.” He did the figures over one more time before he heard Kaidoh’s hissing in his head. His doubles partner would be upset if he was tired again tomorrow, particularly when the Kaidoh family was going through the trouble of inviting him to dinner. Inui shut off his computer and placed his notebooks next to his school texts before slipping into bed. “Oyasumi Kaoru. I will tell you tomorrow.” Smiling, Inui surrendered to sleep.


	2. Chapter 2

Inui was worried about something. It was evident in the scritch scratch of his pencil against the spine of his closed notebook. Oishi wasn’t going to ask, though. He wasn’t going to intrude.

“Hey Inui! Come warm up with us!”

No, Eiji was going to intrude, as he usually did when he thought someone needed cheering up. Usually Eiji’s methods worked, but this was Inui. Inui was different.

“It is unlikely that Kaidoh will be here for three more minutes. He has homeroom cleanup. I would not want to impose.” Inui bowed and walked to the other side of the practice courts, his pencil still scritch scratching away.

“Nyah Oishi, we have to help Inui!” Kikumaru’s grip was cutting off the circulation to Oishi’s arm. This was normal, though, so Oishi rode it out quietly, waiting for Kikumaru to either let go and start plotting or run to Fuji to engage the tensai in plotting. Either way, there would be plotting. Oishi would not get involved. “Nyah Oishi…” No matter how wide Kikumaru’s eyes were or how hard his eyelashes fluttered, Oishi was not going to get involved. “…Fujiko’s busy this week, so…” Oishi had given in before, but this time he was going to stay strong. He even crossed his arms over his chest as he’d seen Tezuka do. “…we should help Inui, ne?”

“Eiji, Inui can sort this out on his own.” Oishi smiled at his doubles partner and, after a quick glance to make sure no one was watching, put a hand atop the one gripping his forearm and squeezed. It was a quick movement, but Eiji would understand it. “If he needs help, he’ll let us know.”

$-$

As fortune would have it, twenty minutes later, Inui pulled Kikumaru aside and said, in a whisper so soft Eiji had trouble hearing, “I need to bring something.”

Kikumaru blinked up at Inui and smiled. He waited for smart Inui to let him, the still smart but sometimes distracted from the matter at hand Kikumaru, know what was going on. It had to do with Kaidoh, obviously, but that was as far as Kikumaru could get. After a few minutes, Kikumaru stomped his foot and huffed through his nose. “Inuiiii, bring something for who, why, when?

“I…” Inui paused. He seemed like he didn’t want to answer Kikumaru’s question directly. He was blushing. “If you were going to Oishi’s house for dinner, what would you do?”

Inui was weird. “What do you mean, what would I do? If I’m going to Oishi’s, I would go to Oishi’s. Nyah Inui, are you feeling okay? Did you drink bad juice?” Kikumaru shuddered at the thought of Inui Juice but his resolve to help the data collector kept him from running, instinctually away.

“I have been asked to attend dinner at a friend’s house. I am unfamiliar with the protocol for such an occasion.” Inui’s pen was scritch scratching on the notebook binding again and he kept looking around at nothing.

Oh. The blush and the scritch scratching pen finally registered. “Why don’t you ask Kaidoh what is expected? I’m sure his family doesn’t do anything weird, like sacrifice goats at the dinner table or anything. Oishi always brings dessert when he comes over, even though I tell him not to.” Kikumaru smiled up at Inui, though it seemed to alarm him more than reassure him.

“I…how did you know I was going to Kaidoh’s?” The notebook was open. Inui’s pen ceased its scritch scratching.

“Oishi told me.” Something was nagging at the back of Kikumaru’s mind. There was something he was forgetting. “You could bring desserts, too, but I don’t know if Kaidoh likes sweets. He always has those nice bentos with healthy things in them.” Kikumaru made a face. Sweets were much better than that healthy stuff. Kaidoh ate weird things, just like Fujiko. Oh no. “Fujiko! I forgot, I need to go get the bucket of water for Fujiko!” Kikumaru began hopping from one foot to another. “Sorry Inui, I’ve got to go.” Kikumaru tore off across the courts, picking up an empty ball pale on the way. Hopefully Fujiko wouldn’t be vengeance-mad at him for forgetting. It was only a few minutes, and buchou was going to be late today because of a meeting with Ryuzaki-sensei. Yes, yes, there was still time.

$-$

The idiot was smiling at him. “Fssshu.” The idiot was smiling at him and stuffing his stupid, big mouth full of filthy snack foods. Disgusting. “Fssshu.” Why Momoshiro couldn’t go eat on the roof and spare Kaidoh the unpleasant experience of listening to the incessant smacking of his lips as he ate like a wild pig was beyond the mamushi’s understanding. “Fssshu.” One of these days, Kaidoh was going to beat the idiot senseless. Not today, though. Today he had to finish eating his high-protein lunch (Tuesdays were always high-protein lunches) and study for his history exam. The Dunk Smash idiot was probably going to fail the exam. Well, that was just one more thing Kaidoh could shove in his stupid, loud face.

“Oi Mamushi, be careful or your face could freeze that way!” Momoshiro chuckled and Kaidoh threw an onigiri at him. Kaidoh wasn’t going to eat it anyway and all that idiot’s stupidity burned a lot of calories, which was why Momo had to eat so much. Let the fool eat the smashed onigiri if he so chose.

“Fssshu. Leave me alone so I can finish my lunch.” With one last glare, Kaidoh turned his attention back to his lunch. The pickled fish was next. It was disgusting, but Inui-senpai said it was good for him. Sometimes he thought Inui-senpai just liked to see him suffer.

“Oi, Mamushi! I heard you and Inui-senpai were going on a date tonight.” Momoshiro chuckled and Kaidoh looked for something to throw and failed.

With nothing to throw, Kaidoh resorted to his usual tactic for getting rid of Momo. “Fssshu.”

“So it’s true!” Momo was clutching his stomach, doubled over in laughter. Kaidoh thought he saw tears starting to stream down the sides of the idiot’s face.

“I don’t need to listen to someone who can’t even make it into Regulars.” Kaidoh smiled to himself at the well placed barb- it shut Momo up nicely. Kaidoh hadn’t meant for Momo to go sulk in the corner of the room, though. “Fssshu. Idiot, you’ll get back on Regulars if you train harder…and stop stuffing your face.” There, that was as nice as he’d get to the idiot, and the only reason he did it was because Inui-senpai would be upset if his comments jeopardized Momo’s advancement.

In the corner, Momo perked up and grinned. “So, Mamushi, about this date you’re having with Inui-senpai…”

$-$

“Tezuka, you are not understanding the severity of the situation.” Inui pushed up his glasses and pointed to something in his notebook. Tezuka wasn’t sure what the little numbers and charts meant, nor did he care. What he did care about was the fact that Fuji was trying to kill him. “Tezuka, do not allow Fuji to distract you. This is important. If Kaidoh’s family does not like me, there is a 64 percent chance that our doubles game will be in jeopardy.”

Tezuka would eat his racket if Inui was actually concerned about their doubles game. “Bring new grip tape, then. It will show your concern for your doubles game.”

“Tezuka, would you bring grip tape if you were invited to dinner at Fuji’s house?” Inui sounded annoyed, which was a new expression on the data collector. Tezuka was amused, though he’d rather Inui not mention Fuji.

“I would not go into Fuji’s house under current circumstances but, were I to visit, I would either bring something useful or nothing at all.” Tezuka refrained from mentioning that he would never bring Syusuke grip tape. Grip tape was long and made out of adhesive, a combination that, in the tensai’s hands, could be fatal, highly embarrassing, or both.

“If I bring nothing…” Inui was muttering to himself and writing in his notebook. Tezuka took the opportunity to quietly walk away to continue his lunch in a more data-free environment.

$-$

Inui knocked on the Kaidoh family’s door. He heard shuffling then saw a brown eye stare at him from between the living room curtains.

“Kaoru! Your friend is here!” Ah, that must be Kaidoh’s mother. Inui’s hands twitched for a notebook, but there were none to be found. He’d left them at home. Inui was aware that his data collection was a bit…unusual to most people and, since he wanted to make the best impression possible, Inui was going to act like a normal, tennis-playing senpai.

The front door opened and a miniature Kaoru stood before him. “Aniki’s in the shower. Come in.” This would be Hazue, Kaoru’s younger brother. If Inui’s research was correct, Hazue played soccer. Inui would have to mention it sometime in the evening. It would up his acceptance rating with Hazue by 10 percent.

“Thank you for having me.” Inui bowed and entered the house, refraining from inhaling deep the scent of the place that Kaoru lived. If he did that, there was an 89 percent chance that Hazue would consider him to be ‘weird,’ dropping his Kaidoh family acceptance rate by 4 percent.

“You don’t look like you play tennis.” Hazue closed the door and walked away, heading up some nearby stairs. He skipped every third step. How peculiar. Inui would have to analyze it later, on another visit. If there was another visit. Inui had opted not to bring a gift. Hopefully the Kaidohs wouldn’t be offended. Inui removed his shoes and continued to stand in the entryway, listening and taking in the layout of the room. He was going to write all of this down once he got home. There was enough in this room alone for an entire notebook. Baby pictures, coats, shoes, furniture, books, and various knick knacks were placed with care throughout the space.

“Sorry senpai, my brother is rude. Please come inside. Dinner will be ready soon.” Kaidoh looked uncomfortable. His shoulders were 10 percent tenser than they usually were.

“Thank you, Kaidoh.”

“Hazue, come set the table! Kaoru, why don’t you show your guest around the house?” Kaidoh’s mother stood in a nearby doorway. Inui imagined it lead toward the kitchen as she was wearing an apron.

“Coming.” Hazue ran down the stairs, flying past Inui and stepping on his foot. Inui ignored the pain in favor of recalculating his initial acceptance rating with the little brat. As opposed to the initial calculation of 79 percent acceptance, Inui now figured we was beginning with a 43 percent acceptance.

“My apologies senpai, my brother is very rude.” Kaoru scowled in the direction his brother had run. “Fssshu. I’ll show you the house now.”

&-&

“Aniki, please hang up so I can go to bed.” Yuuta yawned into his cell phone. “We’ve been on the phone for two hours. I told you I’m sorry for the other day, but I still don’t understand why you’re so bent out of shape about Tezuka. Just find someone else.” Despite his grumbling that Syusuke was demon spawn and not actually a member of the Fuji family, Yuuta tolerated his aniki. Okay, he kind of enjoyed their talks- their short talks. Lately, though, Syusuke had been engaging his little brother in one-sided conversations that lasted through the night. Syusuke talked, Yuuta listened and did his homework or napped or had a snack or emailed his friends.

“This is important, Yuuta.” Syusuke sounded at his wits’ end, which was impressive. If Yuuta hadn’t known that Tezuka Kunimitsu was a force to be reckoned with, he would have immediately known the buchou’s might by his ability to constantly vex Syusuke.

“Aniki, can’t you just talk to him.” Yawn. “He probably doesn’t even know you like him.”

“I do not like that pigheaded, inconsiderate…”

“I think the term you used earlier was ‘dripping vision of physical perfection.’ God, I didn’t just have to say that out loud. I’m going to bed Syusuke. I have a test Thursday so I’ll be studying all day tomorrow. Don’t call me. I won’t answer.” Yuuta searched for the proper Syusuke-deterrent. “I’m giving my cell phone to Mizuki for the day.” There, Syusuke would rather eat live leeches than talk with Mizuki.

“You need better friends, Yuuta. Come back to Seigaku and you can find yourself some quality companions. You’d do well at Fudomine, too. I could speak with Tachibana if you like.” Syusuke was trying to keep him up again, saying things to deliberately piss him off.

“I’m going to bed now.” Yuuta closed his phone and turned it off. He was going to sleep tonight, dammit, without creepy dreams of his brother and Tezuka. Grabbing his toothbrush, Yuuta made his way to the bathroom to brush the taste of sick out of his mouth.

&-&

Kaoru’s senpai was weird. Not just garden-variety weird, there was something super-weird about this guy. Hazue didn’t like it. He didn’t trust anyone whose eyes he couldn’t see. “Please pass the carrots, Kaoru.” The carrots were, in fact, next to Kaoru’s senpai, but Hazue would be damned if he was speaking to the weirdo.

“Inui-senpai, would you please pass Hazue the carrots?” Kaoru frowned at his little brother, but Hazue ignored it. He was busy watching how Inui lifted the bowl of glazed carrots and set it on the spot next to Hazue. Inui smiled.

“Thanks Kaoru.” Hazue ignored the creepy smile and placed more carrots on his plate. His parents were really taken with Inui’s polite manner. They obviously hadn’t noticed how the stranger’s hand had unnecessarily touched Kaoru’s when they were sitting down to the meal. Hazue kicked Inui under the table, light enough for it to seem like an accident. When Inui turned to him, an eyebrow arched high above the frames of his glasses, Hazue remained silent.

&-&

There was a 69 percent chance that Inui was going to lose it and throw something at the brat. There was only a 23 percent chance that said brat would be able to dodge whatever Inui threw. The only thing holding Inui back from splattering Hazue’s face with garlic bean paste was that Inui was 97 percent certain that Kaoru would not approve. It was essential that Kaoru approve of Inui’s domestic abilities. Inui’s final success rating would drop by 10 percent if the Kaidoh family didn’t like him. Sadly, the Kaidoh family included the vermin sitting on the chair next to Inui’s.

“I have some vitamin drinks that might be beneficial for Hazue as an after practice snack.” Inui turned to Hazue and smiled, light from the chandelier glinting off of his glasses. “I can make some for him if you would like.” Inui addressed the comment to Kaoru’s mother, who thought he was helpful and an upstanding young man. Offering to help Hazue would bring Inui’s acceptance rating with Kaidoh-san to 99 percent.

“That would be so kind of you, Inui-kun. Hazue sometimes looks a little green after soccer practice.” Kaoru’s mother smiled and took Inui’s empty plate. The food had been wonderful and Inui had consumed three helpings at Kaoru’s parents’ insistence. They wanted to make sure all of “their boys” were well fed in order to keep up with their active lifestyles.

“It would be my pleasure.” The corner of Inui’s lips turned up and he had to take a sip of his water to keep himself from chuckling and ruining everything. Inui suspected Kaoru knew, though, because his doubles partner had his head in his hands and was hissing.

“Dessert isn’t quite ready to serve yet. Why don’t you and Kaoru go play some video games upstairs? I’ll call you when its time. Hazue, help me clear the table.” There was something metallic in the way Kaidoh-san said her son’s name that made Inui wonder if she wasn’t wise to Inui’s plan for revenge. Oh well, now was not the time to be worrying about that. Now was the time to go to Kaoru’s room.


	3. Chapter 3

Kaidoh’s room wasn’t as clean as he would’ve liked it to be, particularly if Inui-senpai was there, but it would do. The mamushi hissed as he opened the door, gesturing for Inui to follow him. “Sorry senpai, it’s messy.” At least his computer monitor was off, Inui wouldn’t see the cute cat screensaver he’d downloaded yesterday. That would be embarrassing.

“It is 100 percent as I expected.” Inui-senpai was smiling and his hand was twitching. He hadn’t brought a notebook. He probably wanted one.

“Fssshu.” Kaidoh went to his desk. “Here senpai.” He handed Inui a pencil and some paper and pointed to his desk.

“Thank you Kaidoh, but I can…”

“Fssshu. Don’t be weird, senpai, write your data. Mom is interested in your data collection and would like to see some before you go.” It was true, Kaoru often spoke to his mother about Inui’s data and how it came in handy during training.

“I wouldn’t want to disappoint her, then.” Inui was blushing. It was…cute.

“Fssshu.”

&-&

Hazue quickly finished up the dishes and slunk upstairs to spy on his brother and creepy Inui. The door to Kaoru’s room was cracked open and Hazue could just make out Inui sitting at Kaoru’s desk, writing quickly and mumbling. At least Hazue assumed Inui was mumbling because his mouth was moving and the sound was too light to be heard from the door. Kaoru was nowhere in sight, so he was probably sitting on his bed, doing homework. Kaoru had mentioned the possibility of a math quiz tomorrow.

“Ne Kaidoh.” Inui stopped writing and looked toward Kaoru’s bed. Inui’s eyebrows were furrowed and couldn’t be seen over his glasses. He was probably thinking hideous, pervy thoughts about Kaoru. Hazue saw the way he watched Kaoru’s backside as they left the dining room. Inui was probably collecting data so he could defile Hazue’s brother.

Hazue knocked on the door. “Oi Kaoru, whatcha gonna play? If you’re playing Blast Fighter 3 without me, I’m going to steal the PS2 while you’re training!” Hazue heard a hiss and the door opened all the way revealing…not who Hazue expected.

&-&

That was it, the runt was getting a pencil to the eye. Inui rose from his seat and moved out of Hazue’s range of view. He had felt a shiver run up his spine the moment the insufferable rodent began spying on them. At this rate, Inui was never going to be able to bring up the very important issue of his relationship with Kaidoh. While Hazue was snickering to himself, Inui opened the door and stared down at him. “I’m sorry, Kaoru cannot come to the door right now. He is studying- and you are bothering him. It would be prudent of you to leave. Now.” Inui shut the door. There was a 83 percent chance that it hit some part of Hazue’s body while shutting.

“Sorry senpai, my brother is a nuisance.” Kaidoh rubbed at the bridge of his cutely wrinkled nose. “He’s not usually this bad, though.”

“He is no worse than Kikumaru when he’s trying to meddle.” Inui shrugged. Hopefully it didn’t look as tense as Inui felt. Now was the time. Now he needed to confess to Kaidoh, before any other interruptions occurred. His acceptance rate was currently at 90 percent. Inui couldn’t risk any further upsets. “Kaidoh, may I talk with you a moment?”

Kaidoh marked his place in his math text and looked up. “Yes senpai?”

“We have been competing as a doubles team for a little over a month, correct?” One month, two weeks, four days, and eight hours to be precise. Kaidoh would think Inui’s precision to be annoying in this case though (88 percent probability), so Inui stuck with a summary. “In that time we have become friends, yes?”

“Yes.” Kaidoh’s expression was a little bored but slightly intrigued. If Inui could maintain this rate through his confession, there was only a 14 percent chance Kaidoh would hit Inui if kissed after Inui’s confession.

“I find myself…dissatisfied with our friendship.” As the words left Inui’s mouth, he knew he’d messed up. The narrowing of Kaoru’s eyes further proved his hypothesis.

“I’m sorry I’ve become a burden on you, senpai. I will inform buchou that we are no longer playing doubles. Fssshu.” Kaidoh’s fists were clenched and Inui’s acceptance rating had dropped to 73 percent.

“Kaoru! Inui-kun! Dessert!” Kaoru’s mother called.

“I didn’t mean to say it that way, Kaidoh.” Inui spoke hurriedly. Any minute now the brat would be sent to fetch them and barge in. “I mean to say that I would rather our friendship progress beyond its current limitations. I…” Inui heard footsteps, light but jaunty. It would be Hazue. There was no time left. Kaoru was still hissing quietly, not understanding or not listening (the latter being the most probable) to a thing Inui said. Deciding that Kaoru was more a man of action than talk anyhow, Inui did the one thing sure to discover if Kaidoh would accept him or not.

Inui kissed him.

&-&

Kaidoh had always featured his first kiss to be something of an elaborate affair. He would be standing on a hill with a girl and, with the full moon large behind them, they would kiss. It would be light and taste like cotton candy bubble gum. An owl would fly across the moon just as their lips parted, then they would stare deeply into eachother’s eyes and sigh. The night would sigh with them. Then Kaidoh would walk her home and, shyly, give her a kiss on the cheek.

The reality of his first kiss proved to be quite different. The reality of his first kiss was the feeling of Inui’s arms biting into Kaidoh’s as the older boy held him close. The reality was a wet, minty kiss that lasted seconds longer and was backlit by the reading light at Kaidoh’s desk. The reality was Kaidoh’s mother walking in on them. The reality was Hazue staring, wide-eyed at them from the hallway. The reality was going to get him grounded, beaten and…why was his mother sighing?

“Kaoru, you didn’t tell us Inui-kun was your boyfriend.” Kaidoh-san’s eyes were wide and the mamushi swore he saw little hearts in them.

“This is so gross,” Hazue wheezed, clutching at his stomach.

“Hazue, don’t be rude!” Kaidoh-san smacked her younger son on the head with a dish towel. “I think it’s best not to tell your father yet, though. He’ll need time to adjust.” She grabbed Hazue’s arm and moved him out of the room. “Let’s all go down to desert now, before your father suspects anything is wrong.” Kaidoh-san gave a final, sparkling smile to Inui before pulling Hazue along after her.

No, this wasn’t how Kaidoh pictured his first kiss at all.

&-&

Oishi considered himself a patient person. He helped the freshmen with their racket forms without complaint. He stayed late and locked up the clubroom, even when he had to wait for Momo and Kaidoh to finish a fight. Oishi, after an hour of listening to Kikumaru talking to Fuji on his cell phone, was beginning to become more than slightly grumpy.

“Nyah Fujiko! You should just tell buchou!” Eiji was hopping around Oishi’s room, occasionally stopping in his movements to emphatically stomp his foot. Luckily, Oishi’s parents were away for the weekend and not present to question the sudden rash of earthquakes. Despite his agitation, Oishi had to admit the display was cute.

“Eiji, it’s time for bed. Tell Fuji good night.” Oishi placed a calming hand on Kikumaru’s shoulder. Now, the redhead was down to a canter.

“Fujikooooo, I have to go. Just promise me you’ll talk to buchou at practice tomorrow so Oishi and I can go to bed.” Kikumaru’s eyes went wide. “In separate rooms, nyah. Stop laughing Fujiko!”

There went Oishi’s precious privacy. Fuji either kept secrets for blackmail purposes or spread them far and wide in the span of a day. Knowing the tensai, he probably had some sort of photo evidence as well. Eiji’s best friend was creepy and Oishi could understand why Tezuka was…hesitant to speak to Fuji off the courts. If Oishi had a tensai after him, he’d be trying to run away, too. A tap on Oishi’s shoulder brought him back to the room and a docile, pouting Kikumaru.

“Nyah Oishi, Fujiko is going to talk to buchou tomorrow.” Eiji tugged Oishi toward the bed, illuminated by the glow of Oishi’s fish tank. “Sleep sleep.”

Oishi could do nothing but comply.

&-&

Inui couldn’t eat dessert, he was still blushing and was fairly certain that his internal organs wouldn’t be able to process whole foods for a few days- the butterflies were taking up too much room. None of his data provided for the incident back in Kaidoh’s room. Inui’s scenario had them dating in secret for at least two more years, until Kaidoh was in high school and, perhaps, a little more sure of himself. Their kiss was not supposed to be discovered by Kaidoh’s rat brother and his yaoi-friendly mother. Inui was not supposed to be the recipient of quick, conspiratorial winks, and Inui was most certainly not supposed to be receiving glares from his kouhai. When dessert was done, Inui used an upcoming physics test as an excuse to leave. He nearly sprinted home, where he locked the door and sank to the ground. With no other recourse, he dialed one of his closest friends, an expert in all things improbable.

&-&

“You are aware that it is eleven at night, yes?” Why did he put up with this? When he saw Inui’s name on the caller ID, he should’ve just turned the cell phone off and gone to bed.

“My apologies, but my data concluded that you were the logical one to approach with my problem.” Inui sounded frantic, which was uncommon. This must be big.

“What’s so cataclysmic that it couldn’t wait until morning practice?” He couldn’t sound too interested in what Inui had to say, that would destroy his image- not that Inui bought the image in the slightest.

“I kissed Kaidoh.” It wasn’t shame in Inui’s voice, more like despair.

“I was under the impression that that was what this evening was all about. Was I incorrect?” He was amazed that Inui had only kissed the younger boy. Once Inui abandoned his logic, he tended to go painfully overboard.

“His mother walked in on it.”

“I can see where that might cause some problems. So, you’ve been banned from the house?”

“No.” Normally Inui would jump to correct him, not start a game of twenty questions.

“You’ve been given a stern talking to?”

“No.” Right, Inui was being an idiot and this was getting them nowhere.

“What the hell was it, then?”

“She called me Inui-kun and is, if I judged her correctly, planning our wedding.” Well that certainly wasn’t something he expected. He didn’t have a damn thing to say to that, really. “Tezuka?”

“Yes?”

“I’m in over my head, aren’t I?”

“Yes Inui, I believe that statement to be 100 percent correct. Perhaps you ought to bring up the matter with Kaidoh tomorrow…after practice. Do not let it affect your doubles game.” Tennis solved everything. If Inui and Kaidoh could keep their doubles game together, everything else would fall nicely into place.

“Ne Tezuka, why don’t you and Fuji play doubles against us tomorrow? It will make for good data.” Inui, no doubt, had a notebook in hand. His voice was more solid, so he was probably regaining his composure.

“I play singles, Inui. Good night.” Tezuka ended the call and turned his phone off. No matter how many laps he made Inui run in the morning, he was sure his friend wouldn’t be able to focus if Kaidoh was around. Easy enough, he’d make Kaidoh and Fuji play a match on the far courts. Yes, that would do nicely.

&-&

Fuji tapped Tezuka on the shoulder, just light enough to get his attention. “Ne Tezuka, may I have a word with you please?” Fuji smiled, not the normal smile, but an extra-bright smile; his Tezuka smile.

“Fuji, excellent, you’re on the far court against Kaidoh.” Tezuka nodded and turned back to his clipboard.

Fuji tapped again. “Tezuka, it’s really very important that I speak with you. Would you be available for discussion after practice?” Fuji saw Tezuka’s back tighten.

“If you can manage to follow instructions, perhaps I might be able to entertain your request.” Tezuka’s back was still tense, his hands clenching the clipboard, demonstrating the strength in them. “Fuji! Pay attention. Match, far court, now.”

“Hai buchou. I’ll see you after practice, ne?” Fuji was beaming as he trotted over to the far court, earning him stares from the rest of the regulars, Kikumaru in particular. Kikumaru was one of few who knew the differences between Fuji’s smiles. “Kaidoh-kun, we have a match in the far court, buchou’s orders.” From the corner of his eye, Fuji caught Inui frowning. “Ne Inui-kun, you should come too. This will be good data, no? You can call the game.”

“Aah.” Inui stepped cautiously toward Fuji, scribbling something in one of the two notebooks he held. It wasn’t unusual for Inui to be distrustful of Fuji. They’d made quite a nice work of agitating eachother over the years. The animosity was mostly, if not wholly, on Fuji’s side but there wasn’t much the tensai could do to control it. Inui, along with Oishi, was one of Tezuka’s best friends. Fuji hated him. But, if all went well this afternoon, Fuji just might be able to start mending things between himself and Inui, particularly now that Inui was spending most of his time with Kaidoh. He’d have to ask Kikumaru about that.

“Wonderful, thank you,” Fuji said in the cheerful sing-song voice that was his trademark. “Let’s have a good game, ne, Kaidoh-kun?”

“Fssshu.”

&-&

“So, Inui made the move on Mamushi and now the snake’s freaked out?” Momoshiro snickered but, in the back of his mind, he wondered what Kaidoh had been thinking. It wasn’t like Kaidoh hadn’t seen it coming.

“Hoi, and Fujiko’s trying to confess to buchou and stupid buchou keeps sending Fujiko away.” Kikumaru turned and stuck his tongue out at Tezuka’s back.

“Eiji, Momo, we shouldn’t get involved,” Oishi chastised from the referee chair.

Momoshiro chose to ignore Oishi completely, striding to the net to join the bouncing acrobatic specialist. “Now don’t take this as helping the mamushi, because it’s not. This is for the betterment of the team.” Momo paused, adjusting his P.E. uniform- he was still getting used to that; not being a Regular. “We need to got Inui-senpai and Mamushi together to talk this out.

“We could lock them in a shower stall,” Kikumaru offered.

“Eiji!” Oishi was looking around, probably to make sure no one heard. “Don’t interfere!”

Momo really didn’t want to think about Kaidoh and Inui locked in a shower stall. “Nah, we want some sort of neutral territory where they won’t be interrupted but can’t hide from eachother. Also they should have their clothes on.”

Kikumaru looked over to the court where Fuji and Kaidoh were playing. Neither of them seemed to be paying much attention to the game, they were just volleying back and forth. “Nyah, what about Fujiko?” Kikumaru turned back and his eyes were large and watery. How did Oishi-senpai handle this everyday?”

“The obstacle seems to be Buchou’s inability to admit his attraction for Fuji-senpai. Maybe we should lock them in the shower stall.” The thought that he was supposed to be playing a match with Kikumaru flitted across Momo’s mind for a moment, then was gone. There needed to be harmony in the Regulars if they were going to win against Hyotei in the upcoming match. “When I was warming up, I saw Fuji-senpai approaching Buchou. All we need to do is make sure that Fuji-senpai can corner him.”

The redhead across the net nodded gravely. Kikumaru was spinning his racquet around his wrist to help him focus. This was serious business they were dealing with. “Normally Oishi locks up the clubhouse but, if he has to go, then Buchou will have to lock it up. All we need to do is keep Fujiko from coming in until almost everyone is out, then Fujiko can pounce.”

“Good, good, sounds like a plan. Now all we need to do is make sure Oishi-senpai can’t close the clubhouse after practice.” Momo turned to look up at their distraught referee. “Oishi-senpai, don’t you owe Kikumaru-senpai a parfait from last practice?”

“Hoi hoi! He does! Nyah Oishi, take me for a parfait!” Kikumaru was jumping with excitement again.”

“Fine,” Oishi sighed. He was shaking his head, probably in defeat. Oishi-senpai never won an argument against Kikumaru-senpai, he always gave in the moment Kikumaru pouted. It was kinda cute so long as you didn’t have to deal with it everyday, then it would get too sweet and…well…ick.

“So, we’ve handled Buchou and Fuji-senpai, what about Mamushi and Inui-senpai?” If Momo didn’t help the mamushi, then he would have to consider himself a bad rival. You can’t let your rival be miserable at the hands of someone else, that would be wrong. Besides, he sort of promised Inui-senpai a few months back that he would help him with the mamushi. Inui would remember the promise and, if Momo didn’t deliver, there was a bright orange concoction sitting in Inui’s fridge with Momo’s name printed neatly on the bottle. Momo had seen the bottle. He’d smelled the Juice. He would rather Taka-san beat him with a racquet while in Burning Mode than drink the stuff.

“That’s more difficult, nyah.” Kikumaru resumed spinning the racquet around his wrist. “Inui-senpai doesn’t want Kaidoh-kun to be made or scared or run away, and Kaidoh-kun is very very shy- like Oishi.” Kikumaru smiled and looked up at his doubles partner. “Nyah…O-i-shi.”

“No.” Oishi began to climb down the stand.

“But I haven’t said anything yet!” Kikumaru pouted. Hard. Oishi was probably going to give in.

“Eiji, we have no right to interfere. Let Inui and Kaidoh work it out on their own.” Oishi was still climbing down while Kikumaru bounded up to meet him. The puppy dog eyes were still in full swing. Momo was sure Oishi was going to give in.

“But Oishiiii, they’re unhappy. If you just talked to Kaidoh, then he’d be okay, nyah.” Oishi reached the ground and Kikumaru immediately took one of Oishi’s arms hostage. Momo was beginning to feel more than a tad bit uncomfortable watching such a private display, but there was still the matter of Mamushi and Inui-senpai to settle as well as the issued of that orange stuff in Inui-senpai’s fridge.

“Eiji,” Oishi sighed, bowing his head in defeat. “This is the last time, okay? After this we let people sort out their own problems.”

“Yay!” Kikumaru jumped on Oishi’s back and gave Momo a thumbs up. Momo saluted back then ran to get his things out of the clubroom. Kikumaru and Oishi were handling Inui and the Mamushi, he would make sure Fuji-senpai and Buchou were settled. Really, what would Seigaku do without him?


	4. Chapter 4

The first thing that clued Tezuka in to the fact that his teammates were plotting his destruction was when Oishi begged out of closing the clubhouse because he had to take Kikumaru for a parfait. This wouldn’t have aroused Tezuka’s suspicions had Oishi not immediately turned and sought out Kaidoh, pulling the underclassman aside. Oishi was toying with the two forks of hair that always eluded the hair gel he used. The strategist only did that when he was unbearably uncomfortable. Kikumaru, by contrast, was running around, collecting Oishi’s things and humming. Kikumaru only hummed when he was meddling. Obviously, Kikumaru was meddling through Oishi, who had only given in because Kikumaru had pouted.

To top it off, Tezuka was fairly sure Momoshiro was in on whatever plan Kikumaru was executing. Tezuka had seen Momo stop and talk with Fuji after the tensai’s game against Kaidoh. Momoshiro was a nice guy, but he usually preferred to stay away from Fuji unless club business required it. It was all for the best as far as Tezuka was concerned. Fuji was a bad influence. He was a beautiful, moody, volatile, bad influence that Momo would do well to stay away from. But, despite all of this, Momo sought the tensai out and they had a brief conversation, during which Fuji’s sharp eyes had turned and focused on Tezuka. Tezuka knew this because he felt Fuji’s gaze in his stomach. It was a fluttery feeling, like he was drowning one organ at a time. It was a feeling Tezuka didn’t know how to handle and, as such, he avoided it whenever possible. It would work, too, if Fuji weren’t so insistent on maintaining a constant vigil over him.

Tezuka and Fuji were friends. They’d been friends since freshman year, when Fuji discovered Tezuka’s injury. Tezuka had come to confide in Fuji and to find comfort in his presence. Everything had been wonderful until Fuji started looking at him with slightly wider eyes and a smile that tilted downward a little bit on the left. Fuji wanted to play doubles; not tennis-doubles, but life-doubles. Tezuka didn’t play doubles, he played singles. Singles was safe; you didn’t have to worry that your partner would destroy the game. In singles, you looked after yourself. Tezuka knew he was too selfish to play doubles with anyone, even Fuji, so he did the only appropriate thing: he ignored it. Eventually Fuji would give up, or so the theory went.

His teammates were ruining everything and Fuji was the most stubborn creature on the face of the planet.

“Oh, Buchou, you’re still here! Isn’t Oishi supposed to close up?” Momoshiro jogged into the clubhouse, Echizen at his heals.

“Momo-senpai hurry up or I’m stealing your bike and getting burgers without you.” Echizen waited at the door, slouching against the frame and looking very much like an upset hamster.

“I just need to get the Mamushi’s bag for him. He was late to training with Inui-senpai and forgot it. As the acting team manager, it’s my responsibility.” Momo grinned back at Echizen then hefted a bag that contained Kaidoh’s school uniform and textbooks. “Here we go. Night Buchou. You should be outta here soon, Fuji-senpai’s just doing a cool down run.”

Tezuka nodded. He’d never been one for words and right now the only thing he could think of to say in reply to Momoshiro’s comment was, “my ass.” That would never do. Echizen seemed to sense Tezuka’s agitation and pulled Momoshiro out of the clubhouse with a small nod in Tezuka’s direction. Tezuka made a mental note to spare Echizen the extra set of laps he was going to assign the team at tomorrow morning’s practice.

 ** &-& **

The talk with Oishi-senpai had been awkward, and not just in a “we’re talking about a very personal subject” way, but in a “we’re being watched from behind that tree can we please move somewhere discrete” kind of way. Kaidoh understood that Kikumaru liked to follow Oishi around. Kaidoh, himself, had a penchant for quietly observing Inui-senpai when the older teen wasn’t looking, but he always respected Inui-senpai’s privacy. He was not a stalker. Nevertheless, Kikumaru remained behind his tree until the conversation was through. Kaidoh wasn’t sure who put Oishi up to the talk, but it was evident from senpai’s fidgeting that Oishi would rather not be talking about this particularly topic.

“Ne Kaidoh,” he said, maybe four or five times before moving on, “when Eiji and I…when we started our doubles team, it was hard at first.”

Kaidoh nodded. He didn’t really have anything to say; he and Inui were certainly not the Golden Pair (no one whispered about him and Inui-senpai doing illicit things in the supply shed, for one) and had never aspired to be.

Oishi continued to fidget. “I didn’t really think I could trust him at first. He was so- bouncy, and everyone liked him and I was really shy and…I’m rambling, sorry.” Oishi-senpai scratched the back of his head, took a deep breath, and moved on. “What I wanted to say to you was that I understand. It’s hard, playing doubles. You forge a strong connection with your partner and sometimes it gets…awkward. You can always come talk to me.”

Kaidoh bowed and rumbled out a solemn, “Thank you Oishi-senpai” before walking quickly away. He could hear Kikumaru rustling in the bushes and, the sooner he was out of sight, the sooner his energetic senpai could stop trying to hide. It was sweet of Oishi to want to help Kaidoh and Inui’s doubles game, but there really wasn’t much that could be done at the moment. The main problem wasn’t even that Inui had kissed him- after the initial shock had worn off, Kaidoh had decided he’d rather enjoyed the moment- the problem was that Kaidoh’s mother knew. She knew and she wasn’t going to shut up about it. Ever. And, even if she did, Hazue was “scarred for life” and mentioned the kiss every ten minutes when their father wasn’t in earshot. It was beyond embarrassing, it was mortifying.

 ** &-& **

Fuji wasn’t nervous- he was terrified. The tensai was used to nice, predictable ventures. He was used to winning. Whenever Fuji undertook anything with Tezuka involved, there was always a wild element that Fuji couldn’t account for. Said element was usually something that made Fuji’s heart race at 143 kilometers an hour and served to freeze the tensai in his tracks. It could be something as simple as the wind rustling Tezuka’s hair just so, or as large as Fuji walking in while Tezuka was still in his after-shower towel. Fuji was sure Tezuka knew, which was why the buchou had been avoiding him. Fuji didn’t blame him but still, it hurt a little. Tezuka was supposed to be his friend, they were supposed to talk about things that went wrong, not just walk away from them.

Fuji waited near the courts for Momo and Echizen to leave the clubhouse with Kaidoh’s bag; that would be the signal. From there, Fuji planned to enter and strip immediately, take a shower, and approach Tezuka in little else but a towel and water droplets. It wasn’t as good as something Inui might’ve concocted, but it was the best Fuji could do on forty five minutes’ notice and without Kikumaru around to run for supplies. True Fuji could’ve asked one of the freshmen to fetch things for him, but he didn’t want the bright eyed youths (who were more than a little afraid of him) entwined in his affairs. Like Tezuka, Fuji was a private person. Unlike Tezuka, Fuji wasn’t an emotional oyster.

Momo and Echizen left the clubhouse, chatting about burgers and new racquet strings. Fuji waited another few minutes then casually sauntered toward the clubhouse. When he opened the door, Tezuka was sitting on one of the benches, legs crossed, foot bobbing slightly with impatience. “Gomen Tezuka, I didn’t want to get any cramps. I overstretched a bit trying to return Kaidoh’s Boomerang.”

In reply, Tezuka raised an eyebrow. His foot ceased its mid-air tapping.

Fuji smiled like nothing was wrong and Tezuka hadn’t just non-verbally called his bluff. “I’ll just go wash up.”

“You’ll have to shower at home, I’m locking the clubhouse.” Buchou stood and turned to gather his things.

“Ne Tezuka,” Fuji hesitated, biting his lip. So much for the plan. “Can we talk?”

“On the way home, I have homework that needs to be done.” Tennis bag in place, Tezuka reached down and handed Fuji his own bag, already packed. “Ka-san is making manicotti for dinner.”

Fuji accepted his bag with a genuine smile. It had been at least two months since Tezuka had invited him over for dinner. “She’s such a wonderful cook. I look forward to it. But, Tezuka…” Fuji debated just leaving things as they were. If Tezuka was inviting him over for dinner, then their friendship was, despite Fuji’s many spiteful acts this past week, returning back to its scheduled course. That could be good enough, at least for right now.

“Fuji.” Tezuka was waiting at the door.

“Oh, sorry, I was just thinking.” Fuji trotted outside of the building and, just before he turned to smile at Tezuka, he caught a flicker of something in the bushes.

 ** &-& **

“Momo-senpai, your elbow is in my armpit.” Echizen scowled and kicked at the dirt. They were supposed to be eating hamburgers, but noooo, Momo-senpai wanted to spy on Fuji and Buchou, who were just locking up the clubroom and walking home. They did this all the time. What was the big deal?

“Be quiet or they’ll hear you!” Momo whispered, placing two hands on Echizen’s head and pushing down. “They’re coming!”

This was stupid. Momo-senpai had been spending too much time with Kikumaru-senpai and had obviously caught some sort of brain disease. “Fuji-senpai probably knows we’re here. His eyesight is scary.” Echizen began to rise but was pulled down again.

“Shhhh!” Momo pulled Echizen into a headlock and continued to watch the two upperclassmen while Echizen growled.

“Momo-senpai I’m going to tell Kaidoh-senpai you’re working for Inui-senpai.”

Momoshiro let Echizen go with a scream which promptly attracted the attention of Fuji and Tezuka. Fuji waved. Tezuka ignored them. “Echizen,” Momo growled.

“Mada mada da ne.” Echizen adjusted his cap and brushed dirt off of himself. “Come on, you owe me burgers.”

 ** &-& **

Inui had been 79 percent certain that Kaidoh wasn’t going to show up for training. At the very least (38 percent alternate probability), Kaidoh would insist that Inui leave the premises immediately and never return. When Kaidoh softly hissed, “You’re late, senpai,” Inui had no recourse but to stand and stare at his kouhai. Kaidoh blinked and began to stretch. “Senpai, I need your help.”

“H-hai.” Inui moved mechanically over to put his hands on Kaidoh’s shoulders, helping him to stretch forward over his legs. “Ano, Kaidoh, about yesterday-“

“It’s okay senpai. I’m sorry my mother made such a big deal about it.” There was a 12 percent increase in the blood flowing through Kaidoh’s cheeks. It made Inui’s ability to resist the urge to kiss his kohai drop to 68 percent; a 20 percent decrease. “Senpai, you’re pinching my shoulders.”

“Ah, gomen Kaidoh. I was thinking.” Inui smiled down at the top of Kaidoh’s head, knowing that the younger boy wouldn’t look up to meet his gaze. Kaidoh was probably going to wait until the end of their training session to tell Inui off.

“Don’t think too hard, senpai. Ka-san will be upset if you analyze yourself to death.” Kaidoh gave a rare smile and began his jog. Inui stared after him, relishing in the rare (14 percent chance) occasion of Kaidoh telling a joke. Perhaps things would work out after all.

 ** &-& **

“Ne, Tezuka, could we talk for a moment, please?” It was the third time Fuji had asked since they’d come up to Tezuka’s room to do homework. Tezuka suspected that Fuji would not take kindly to being delayed again. It was time Tezuka face the inevitable conversation.

“Yes Fuji?” Tezuka tried to sound patient and not as awkwardly frightened as he felt. This conversation was going to ruin everything.

The tensai let out a deep breath and opened his eyes, revealing deep pools of aquarian blue. “First, I would like to ask that you hear what I have to say, no interruptions. Promise?” Tezuka raised a brow but nodded his consent. “We have known one another since our freshman year. Since then we have become…close, yes?” Fuji’s fingers began to fidget with the hem of his uniform shirt. “It is difficult being your friend, Tezuka. You’re so closed off when everyone else is watching.” Fuji dropped his gaze though his eyes remained open. “I sometimes wonder if you’re not pleased to be seen with me, to have people know that we are- were close.”

Tezuka opened his mouth to protest but found the sight of Fuji, confused and alone, had destroyed his power of speech. He could just let it pass, as most of Fuji’s moods did, but something in Fuji’s desperately quiet words resonated within him. Tezuka couldn’t help the hand that fell onto the clasped ones in Fuji’s lap. As buchou, it was Tezuka’s responsibility to make sure his players were in the finest condition, both physically and mentally. This display was a result of his duty and nothing more. And even if he did feel something of what Fuji seemed to be feeling, even if he’d felt it for as long as he’d seen the beautiful boy, there wasn’t any reason to pursue it. Fuji was fascinated with him because of his injury, no more. Once Fuji learned that Tezuka might never play again at full strength and that the match Fuji craved was an impossibility, Fuji’s interest would wane. Tezuka had a broken arm; he didn’t fancy a heart to match.

“Fuji,” Tezuka began, but was cut off by a trembling finger to his lips.

“Please don’t tell me I’m being silly, Tezuka. Yuuta tells me that often enough.” The finger traced Tezuka’s lips; first the top, then the bottom. “I’m not asking for a confession of love, I don’t even know if I could give one, myself, at this point. I would just like- something from you, even if it’s just a smile every now and then.” Fuji’s hand moved to cup Tezuka’s face, turning it so that the buchou was forced to look the tensai directly in the eyes.

“Fuji, my arm is getting worse.” It took all of his breathe to say it, but he’d finally done it. “I doubt it’ll make it through to nationals. If I come up against a difficult opponent, that’ll be the end of it for me.” Fuji’s hand was still guiding his gaze and Tezuka wanted, more than anything, to look away in that moment. He didn’t want to see the concern, and something softer, floating through the tensai’s gaze. Tezuka didn’t want pity. He wasn’t particularly sure what he wanted at this point, which was why it was better to commit to nothing.

“I don’t like you because of the way you play tennis,” Fuji sighed, removing his hand. “I like you because you do stupid things, like wrecking your arm to help Echizen realize his potential and getting Oishi out of detention when he’s late to class because of Kikumaru. Even if you’d never picked up a racquet in your life, you’d still stand out from everyone else.” Fuji looked away then, toward a photo that stood on Tezuka’s nightstand. “This is from our freshman year.”

The photo was of Tezuka and Fuji standing in front of Yamato-buchou. Fuji was smiling and tugging Tezuka toward the camera while Yamato stood with his signature good-natured stoicism. That year had been alternately the best and worst of Tezuka’s life. He kept the photo to remind himself of it and because, while Fuji was prone to snapping photos at random, the tensai rarely allowed photos to be taken of him without prior notice. Fuji in his natural state was breathtaking, even at twelve years old. Tezuka felt a tapping at his temple.

“Ne Tezuka, what are you thinking?” Fuji’s eyes were closed again, but he hadn’t assumed his false smile.

Tezuka stared at the photo in silence a bit longer before admitting the truth of his thoughts. “I was thinking that, in three years, you’re still too beautiful for any man to lay claim to.” Tezuka closed his eyes and turned his face to the ground. That was, quite possibly, the most idiotic thing he’d ever said. Why did he even bother answering? Why couldn’t he have just stayed silent, or lied, or…

“Arigatou Kunimitsu.” Fuji’s lips pressed against Tezuka’s cheek and the world ceased to move.

 ** &-& **

After training, Inui walked Kaidoh home. The air was chilly and Inui was able to claim that he was supervising his kohai’s jog-free return home. Neither of them believed it for a moment. The truth was that Inui didn’t want Kaidoh to leave his presence because, once the mamushi was gone, Inui was fairly certain he wouldn’t see his kohai again outside of tennis. Kaidoh agreed to have Inui along, which was at once exhilarating and nerve-wracking. “Ne, Kaidoh.”

“Yes senpai?” Kaidoh stepped up to his door.

“I would like to apologize for making things difficult for you. I did not think my actions through thoroughly.” Inui bowed deeply. He considered begging, but Kaidoh wouldn’t be moved by such a pitiful display.

“Senpai, it’s okay. Ka-san will settle down and Hazue will get used to you. Just don’t tell Tou-san until I’m able to live on my own.” Kaidoh’s expression was so solemn, it took Inui an extra beat to register that Kaidoh was, in his own way, giving his consent to move their previously professional relationship in a more intimate direction. This defied any and all of Inui’s data.

“You’re not angry?”

“No.”

“Disgusted?”

“No.”

“Are you sure?”

“Senpai, it’s cold. Come inside. Ka-san will make cocoa.” Kaidoh pulled on Inui’s sleeve, dragging the data collector into the entryway. “Tou-san is away on business the rest of the week.” Kaidoh’s cheeks flushed 28 percent brighter than usual. “Ka-san wants you to come to dinner until Tou-san returns.”

“Please tell her it would be my pleasure.” Inui looked around at the house windows, making sure the runt wasn’t peeking at them through the curtains. Satisfied that no one was watching (he was 96 percent sure), Inui moved forward and ghosted his lips against Kaidoh’s, brightening his kohai’s blush by an additional 5 percent.

“Kawaii!” came the distinctly feminine call from inside. Four percent was apparently all the probability a Kaidoh needed to succeed.

“It would seem your family is going to render my data useless, Kaidoh.” Inui placed a warm hand to Kaidoh’s stony cheek. “I think I will enjoy the challenge.” Prepared to deal with whatever the Kaidoh family had in store for him- more specifically whatever evil devices Hazue had constructed to keep Inui away from Kaidoh- the third year took Kaidoh’s hand and gestured for the mamushi to move toward the nearby cedar shoe rack. Hand in hand, they moved, breaking their grasp only long enough to remove their shoes and for Inui to wave, teeth flashing and glasses glinting, at Hazue.

“Okaeri,” Kaidoh called, his eyes remaining glued to the floor though he never let go of Inui’s hand.

“God, not him again,” Hazue grumbled, slinking upstairs toward his room. “Dinner’s done. You go; I’ve lost my appetite.”

“How unfortunate that you won’t be able to join us,” Inui said through his still glistening teeth. “If you’re not feeling well, I’ll make sure Kaidoh-san has plenty of recovery juice recipes. Inui gave Kaidoh’s hand a quick squeeze before they set off toward the kitchen. Inui was going to make some Extra Special Titanium Power Retribution Juice. There was only a one percent chance that Hazue would be able to digest it in comfort. It was going to be beautiful.


End file.
